Song Ziyao carried only a suitcase and a modest bedroll.
Inside the suitcase were several changes of clothes, food, basic daily necessities, and books. The bedroll contained only a mattress, bedsheet, summer blanket, and bamboo sleeping mat.
For summer, these were enough for the short term.
The place where she had been assigned as a sent-down youth was Dongxing Commune of Gaoyang County, Tan Jinhe’s hometown.
Gaoyang County belonged to a remote part of the province. It was a mountainous region, and traveling there by train from the Provincial Capital City took fifteen hours.
The train departed at four o’clock in the afternoon and would arrive between seven and eight the next morning, meaning she had to spend the night on the train.
Although the journey was not especially long, the hard seats were extremely uncomfortable. Song Ziyao had never suffered like this before, and she felt miserable.
But whenever she thought that going to the countryside meant she would be able to see Tan Jinhe, she instantly felt that none of it mattered.
After riding for more than three hours, she got up and went to the restroom.
The moment she opened the door, the pungent smell of urine almost made her throw up.
But there was no helping it. Nature called.
After locking the door, Song Ziyao was just about to finish her business as quickly as possible when a sudden thought flashed through her mind.
She could use the restroom inside the Dimensional Space!
During the past few days, she had observed that although there were no changes in temperature or day and night inside the Dimensional Space, utilities such as water, electricity, and gas functioned normally.
Forget using the restroom, living inside it would not be a problem at all.
After taking care of her physical needs in the Dimensional Space, Song Ziyao felt a little hungry, so she went to the kitchen to find something to eat.
The moment she opened the refrigerator door, she was stunned.
Over the past few days, she had not touched much of the other food, but she had eaten quite a lot of fruit.
Yet now, the refrigerator had somehow returned to its original fully stocked state. Even the half-eaten Hami melon had reappeared.
What… was going on?
Song Ziyao calculated the time.
Today marked exactly seven days since she had first entered the Dimensional Space.
Could it be that every seven days, the Dimensional Space restored itself to its original state?
Then was it only the refrigerator that reset, or the entire space?
Suddenly, Song Ziyao heard someone knocking on the restroom door.
There was no time to think further. She quickly exited the Dimensional Space and opened the restroom door.
The older woman outside rolled her eyes at her.
“Such a pretty young lady, yet you take so long to poop!”
…
For a moment, Song Ziyao genuinely could not tell whether the woman was complimenting her or insulting her.
She smiled awkwardly at the woman.
After returning to her seat, Song Ziyao remained extremely excited.
The refrigerator’s restoration was now certain. If that was the case, even if she never planted grain or vegetables in the garden, she would still have more vegetables, fruits, meat, eggs, and milk than she could ever finish.
She could raise Tan Jinhe into a strong and sturdy man!
The young woman sitting beside her glanced at her a couple of times before asking: “What brand of cold cream are you using? It smells wonderful.”
Song Ziyao shook her head in confusion.
“I don’t use cold cream.”
However, when she lowered her head and sniffed herself, she really did seem to carry a faint fragrance.
She could not identify exactly what scent it was. It seemed to be a mixture of various floral fragrances, sweet yet carrying the fresh feeling of spring.
Suddenly, Song Ziyao remembered.
The garden was filled with blooming flowers, and the entire Dimensional Space was permeated with fragrance.
She had probably stayed there for a little too long just now and picked up the scent.
Seeing that she did not provide an answer, the young woman beside her curled her lips slightly and said nothing more. Tilting her head to one side, she closed her eyes and pretended to rest.
Outside the window, the sky gradually darkened into deep blackness.
The passengers on the train also gradually stopped talking. Other than the clattering sounds of the train moving forward, there was almost no other noise.
Song Ziyao kept her money, ration coupons, and other valuables inside the Dimensional Space. The nearby carriages were also mostly occupied by sent-down Educated Youths, so she leaned back against her seat and fell asleep with peace of mind.
However, the conditions were simply too poor. She did not sleep soundly, and after drifting between sleep and wakefulness for a short while, she woke up.
Looking at her watch, she saw it was only four o’clock. Outside the window, the sky was still dark.
Song Ziyao simply decided to go to the restroom.
After locking the door, she entered the Dimensional Space.
Inside the Dimensional Space, she washed up, changed into clean clothes, and ate a little food before leaving again.
When she returned to her seat, the young woman beside her had also awakened.
Seeing Song Ziyao looking refreshed and impeccably clean, the young woman said nothing. However, not long afterward, she also went to the restroom. When she returned, she was wearing a fresh set of clothes.
At some point, the vast plains outside the window had become rolling mountain ranges.
Song Ziyao’s heartbeat quickened.
Only then did a sense of nervousness arise within her.
Would Tan Jinhe at this point in time like her?
The train station was bustling with people everywhere.
However, outside the platform was a reception point for Educated Youths.
It had been established by the County Educated Youth Office.
All Educated Youths assigned to villages within the county had to gather there and register first. Afterward, personnel from the County Educated Youth Office would organize them and send them to their respective communes.
There were roughly seven to eight hundred Educated Youths lined up to register, forming a massive crowd.
Nowadays, the peak period of the Down to the Countryside Movement had already passed, so this number was not considered large. Once divided among the communes, each commune would receive only around a dozen people.
A few years earlier, special trains had arrived one after another, transporting wave after wave of people.
“Song Ziyao! You came to the countryside too?!”
Hearing someone call her name, Song Ziyao looked up.
She saw a somewhat familiar young woman walking toward her. A huge military canvas bag was slung over the young woman’s shoulder, weighing down her slender body until she was nearly bent at the waist.
The young woman walked up to Song Ziyao, set the bag on the ground, and narrowed her eyes as she examined her.
“Isn’t your father a Deputy Factory Director? Why would you be sent to the countryside?”
The scrutinizing gaze made Song Ziyao somewhat uncomfortable.
She replied calmly: “Going to the countryside is answering the nation’s call. What does that have to do with my father being a Deputy Factory Director?”
Apparently not expecting such a response, the young woman froze for a moment before speaking again.
“You’re still angry with me? I really didn’t do that on purpose. I didn’t know my brother was sleeping at home that day. Otherwise, why would I have left you alone in the house?”
Hearing those words, Song Ziyao looked at the young woman once more and finally remembered who she was.
Liao Hongmei, her deskmate during high school.
While they had shared a desk, their relationship had been fairly good.
One time, Liao Hongmei had invited Song Ziyao to her house to play. Halfway through, she suddenly said she had something to do and needed to step out.
Who would have thought that the moment Liao Hongmei left, someone would emerge from an inner room of the house?
Liao Hongmei’s older brother, Liao Hongjun, a notorious hooligan.
Frightened, Song Ziyao immediately tried to leave. However, when she pulled on the door, she discovered that Liao Hongmei had locked it from the outside.
Only then did Song Ziyao realize something was wrong. Seeing the increasingly lecherous look in Liao Hongjun’s eyes, she panicked and decided to strike first. She viciously kicked him between the legs, then climbed out through the window.
The Liao family lived in a single-story house, and unlike windows in later generations, there were no security bars installed. Escaping through the window was relatively easy, though she twisted her ankle because she was in such a hurry.
Liao Hongjun had not expected her to move so quickly and so nimbly either. By the time the pain subsided and his mind cleared, Song Ziyao had already escaped.
Even the dullest person could see what the Liao siblings had been planning.
From that day on, Song Ziyao completely cut off contact with Liao Hongmei.
She simply had not expected that after being reborn and choosing to go to the countryside, she would run into her again.